Easy ideas for bringing people together

Volunteer Spotlight | Julie Kerr, Homeroom Mom, Pittsburgh, PA

Many parents want to help out in their child's classroom, but shy away from being in charge, because they fear that coordinating other parents will be a logistical nightmare. Today, our Volunteer Spotlight shines on Julie Kerr, who uses VolunteerSpot's online signup sheets to coordinate parents who want to be involved in helping out in her daughter's kindergarten class.

I use it to contact them for help in planning, setting up, participating in, and cleaning up for any party or activity relating to the class/troop. I also use it to request materials for projects, gifts for teacher/leaders, and to fill in time slots for volunteer activities. Whether I need to ask for something on a specific date, a range of dates, a recurring calendar item, or just help in general, VolunteerSpot has met my needs and exceeded my expectations.

What other activities are you involved in as a volunteer or volunteer leader?

I am a volunteer leader with my daughter's American Heritage Girls troop.

What’s one piece of advice you have for parent volunteers out there?

If you spend a little bit of time preparing before you send out your "invitations," other parents are much more likely to sign up to help. If your activity seems disorganized and last-minute, they are less likely to want to be involved. VolunteerSpot helps you to be as organized as possible. Putting in some time and effort in the planning stages will certainly make the rest of the event run smoothly; before, during and after. Others will be impressed and want to know how you "pulled it off!"

Why did you decide to use VolunteerSpot?

I wanted a tool that was going to help me be organized and effective, while saving valuable time. I wanted to volunteer with my daughter's school class, but I didn't want to be usurped by countless hours of work on my own. I created a "pretend" event and tested out the service just sending messages to myself. I was amazed at how easy it was, and I loved the fact that it was free and I didn't have to register for anything.

You can use VolunteerSpot even if you don't have a specific idea. Ask other parents for ideas via the service by creating the time slots, then let them decide how to fill the slots on their own! Make them responsible for their individual time slot in the event and then just let yourself be the overseer of the whole event! And don't forget to make a slot for clean-up!

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We salute Julie and all the other parents out there making a difference in our children's schools. If you're using VolunteerSpot, write and tell us about what you're doing and give us a chance to shine our Volunteer Spotlight on you!! Just email us at VS@volunteerspot.com.

Health Benefits to Volunteering

Turns out your selfless act of kindness may not be so selfless, and that's ok! Recent decades of research are forming wonderfully alarming conclusions that volunteering and helping others has incredible health benefits.

The warm, fuzzy feeling you get when volunteering and helping others actually has it's own physiological origin comprising a chemical makeup which includes endorphins - natural opiates that help relieve stress, reduce pain, and in the long-term, strengthen your very own immune system.

Not only that, but, ScienceDaily.com reported in early June that older adults who volunteered sharply reduced their risk of hypertenstion.

"New research from Carnegie Mellon University shows that older adults who volunteer for at least 200 hours per year decrease their risk of hypertension, or high blood pressure, by 40 percent. The study, published by the American Psychological Association's Psychology and Aging journal, suggests that volunteer work may be an effective non-pharmaceutical option to help prevent the condition."

The Health Benefits of Volunteering: A Review of Recent Research has also established a strong relationship between volunteering and health. They write that volunteers have "lower mortality rates, greater functional ability, and lower rates of depression later in life than those who do not volunteer."Doing GOOD in your community is an act which seeks no reward, however, our bodies and minds certainly seem to be in tune to it's positive impact on the 'person' as a whole. An apple a day keeps the doctor away? Try volunteering as a way to keep the doctor at bay!

Where to start? Check out fun service ideas and inspiration for helping others!

Promoting Active Kids with Creative Games

We are LOVING our Kids Play blogger series where Moms all across the country are talking about the games they played as kids and what their family's now love to play.

Heather Johnson of FamilyVolley.com is giving the lowdown on a kid favorite,' "Fill the Cup" - check out an excerpt of her Family Fun Friday post and read the entire piece HERE.

It has been a while since we have had a Family Fun Friday. But with school out, it is time for some fun and some new ideas, Don't you think?

In honor of the crazy hot temperatures that are hitting here in Utah today, (they say it will hit 99 degrees. Yikes!) This game is going to help your family get active, and get outside and cool off. And, laugh a lot in the process. It is normal when kids get out of school, to find them in front of technology a lot. Tame the technology and encourage your kids to play outside for at least 60 minutes a day. This game, and the water fight that will most likely follow, will keep them entertained for at least an hour.

This game would be perfect for children's birthday parties too. Another tip, I like to get my mirrors, pitchers, and cups at the dollar store. That way you can get as many as you need, without breaking the bank.

4 Questions to Ask When Recruiting Volunteers

Volunteer recruitment can seem a daunting task but few efforts garner greater reward. Schools, nonprofits and community groups rely largely on volunteers to get important work done, live out their mission and grow their community. If your group is having a hard time recruiting and coordinating volunteers, ask yourself these 4 questions:

1. Where are my potential volunteers? Volunteer managers have the ultimate tool at their tip of their fingers for finding volunteers - social media! In this digital age, it is vital to be online in your potential volunteer's social communities. If your organization or community group has not yet dipped your toes in the social pool, get online and do some digging. Search for similar organization's to yours and find out where their largest social media presence is - are they on twitter? Facebook? Google+?

Where their social communities boom, so may yours. Set up a facebook page or twitter account, start following groups in your community, national organizations that share your cause, and local news outlets and bloggers. Network with them via tweets and post to help spread the word and start putting the call out for volunteers. Make sure to include your social handles in all your marketing channels, from flyers to eNewsletters.

2. Can I simplify the signup process? When it's convenient to get involved, volunteers feel more welcomed and less stressed about joining your group's cause. Reply all emails, last minute phone calls and meetings they just can't fit into their busy schedule are all huge volunteer turn offs.

Turn instead to free online sign up sheets and volunteer calendars - VolunteerSpot's free and easy scheduling tools saves volunteer coordinators tons of time (and stress) and allows volunteers to sign up to help from their computer or smartphone. Automated reminders help everyone keep their commitments and makes sure your events are a real success.

4. What about my current volunteers? Often the desparate search for new or more volunteers can leave current volunteers feeling neglected. Volunteer appreciation has a direct impact on volunteer recruitment. When current volunteers are recognized for their efforts, they are more likely to spread the good word about your organization and bring others on to help. They will also be willing to assist in recruitment by sharing their stories and experience in commitment to your cause.

5. Do I have feedback for volunteers? The real question is, do you know the impact of your organization or group on your local community? If your group is seeking to make a difference, it is pertinent to measure your work, set and celebrate goals and milestones, and share this information with potential volunteers. For example, if your group has packed 1000 food backpacks for community children, shout this out! Potential volunteers want to hear how your group is making an impact before they decide to get involved. Explore and share new goals for each season and put out the call for volunteers to help you meet these goals and do real GOOD!

Common Core Activities for the Classroom

“These (Common Core State) standards will help teachers, students, and parents know what is needed for students to succeed in college and careers, and will enable states, school districts, and teachers to more effectively collaborate to accelerate learning and close achievement gaps nationwide.”

- Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education

Personalized learning, a strong curriculum and continual assesment proves the Common Core's success in the classroom, and according to a recent online survey, 65% of teachers feel they are unprepared to teach the Common Core. With workbooks, activity sheets, task cards and thinking mats, Carson Dellosa Publishing continues to be a reliable resource and tool for teacher to help their students excel in the classroom.

1. Engage Students Every Day! With Common Core 4 Today Workbooks available in math and language arts, for K-Grade 5 – Download a FREE 2 week sample today! Your choice of subjects and grades.

Rewarding Children's Creativity & Imagination

As we continue to share the inspiring, sometimes nostalgic, often heartfelt and thought-provoking posts from our Kids Play bogger series, we are reminded what a great season Summer proves to be for letting kids minds run wild and their imaginations bloom.

Meg Rosker of LetChildrenPlay.com is promoting creative play and a world where kids forgo the newest app and use their brains and fresh air to learn and grow. She writes,

I have come across some great neighborhood games in recent years. I remember one that involved a Frisbee being tossed into a trashcan and another involving wood blocks that had to be strategically knocked down from a challenging distance. On the school playground children in the neighborhood play Zombie tag and they are mad for kickball. In fact I have never seen a game bring so many children of different ages and abilities together like kickball does on our playground. My husband grew up playing stick ball, a game that was invented as the result of impoverished children not being about to afford a real baseball bat. From the plague of poverty this game was birthed and still exists today. In fact my husband is teaching our sons to play.

Of course there are a plethora of games kids come up with each summer involving football or training exercises in preparation for the fall season. Whatever the case may be this is a chance for children to take ownership and be rewarded for their imagination, a truly unique child quality that wanes for many of us as we age.

So this summer consider getting back to the basics of enjoying some simple childhood fun. Grab a ball or a rope or a stick and start messin’ around. See what you and your family may invent. Who knows, you just may win $5,000.

Volunteer Spotlight | Masuma Virji, UMF Co-Founder & Director

United Muslim Foundation (UMF) serves to Promote Unity, Education and Community Service. Their philosophy is to network with other charitable organizations and with Muslims of every sect, culture and race who seek to contribute to society. UMF extends solidarity to learning centers, groups and individuals who wish to work United to promote greater Islamic awareness and sensitivity, and create and encourage involvement in Community Service efforts.

Today, our Volunteer Spotlight shines on Masuma Verji, UMF Director, who uses VolunteerSpot's online signup sheets to coordinate volunteers for the many community service events organized by the UMF.

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Please tell us about your
organization and your volunteer needs.

United Muslim Foundation (UMF) is a
registered non-profit, 501(c)(3) and a recognized public charity based in the
USA. UMF serves to Promote Unity, Education and Community Service. We
host charity and unity festivals, organize events to feed and clothe the needy,
conduct presentations on Islam at churches and universities, run programs for
youth and provide teen counseling services.

Explain how you use VolunteerSpot
to coordinate these volunteers.

Volunteerspot has been a wonderful
asset for UMF. We've created a volunteerspot calendar for each one of our
operations which we market in e-newsletters and on Facebook and have put them up
prominently on our website as well.

We have a VolunteerSpot calendar
for UMF Hungerteam, which organizes:

- Monthly soup kitchen events

- Twice a week End of Day
Doughnation deliveries

- Joins in annual gleanings for the
hungry

- Other events and collections to help
the needy and for disaster relief.

UMF Outreach:

- A calendar for intra and interfaith
events, church and university presentations and information booths on Islam.

UMF Guides:

- A calendar of youth educational
events and fun activities our Guides and their parents can sign up for.

What’s one piece of advice you have
for volunteers or their leaders out there?

Unlike Facebook events which don't give an
accurate count of attendees who truly intend to help out at an event, VolunteerSpot asks those who may be interested in volunteering for their
email address, allows them to select what items you'd like them to bring and
sends them an automatic reminder for you. It even lets you know if anyone who has
signed up for an event decides to drop out and makes it easy for event
organizers to prepare accordingly.

Why did you decide to use
VolunteerSpot?

I found out about VolunteerSpot when
I was doing an online search for an easier and online way to get volunteers to
sign up for events. I love how VolunteerSpot makes sign up sheets available on
the iPad so volunteers can sign up directly on the calendar and one doesn't
have to worry about the sign up sheets getting lost. It also makes it easy for
volunteers to sign up online and know exactly what time and where they are to
report and what to bring and it's nice that they always get a reminder so they
don't forget about their commitment. I love the fact that you can
request donations and that users can donate online through VolunteerSpot if
they choose.

Anything else you’d like our
readers to know?

At UMF we encourage everyone, young
and old, to try to give back to the community in any small way you can. When we
look back at all we have accomplished through the hundreds of volunteers who
have served with us over the last 10 years, we feel truly blessed to see the
great impact the cumulation of our actions has made. And now, thanks to VolunteerSpot storing e-mail addresses for each calendar, logging hours
volunteered, and making it easy to send emails to target groups, we can use it
easily to thank each of our volunteers who have contributed to our operations,
for making a big difference in the world.

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We salute Masuma Verji and all the other volunteer community leaders out there making a difference in our world. If you're using VolunteerSpot, write and tell us about what you're doing and give us a chance to shine our Volunteer Spotlight on you!! Just email us at VS@volunteerspot.com.

Volunteer Ideas | Get Started!

Where your passion for helping others meets a real need in your community, you will inspired into service. The summer months provide a respite from the chilly winter and spring that gave us good reason to stay indoors; getting outside into the sun and our vibrant communities opens our minds once more to where and how we turn living into making a difference. Get started volunteering with these 4 ideas:

1. Discern your passion: Opportunities to help abound, however, you are your best self as a volunteer when you are doing something you love while making a difference. If food insecurity pulls at your heart strings, contact your local foodbank. If animals make you coo, volunteer at a local animal shelter or hospital.

3. Start your own service project: Is there a need calling to you in your neighborhood that is not being addressed? Tackle it yourself and coordinate a service project with friends and family where you run the show. Perhaps it's cleaning up your local park, fixing up an elderly neighbors garden/walkway, painting the community center, you name it. Use free online signup sheets to quickly coordinate your volunteer group - easy online scheduling and no reply-all emails!

4. Step Outside of the Box: Volunteering is often best done with others. Challenge yourself to meet new people and make new friends by volunteering at group-oriented projects. Chances are your town or city has festivals, performances, shows, parades or other large events that require lots of volunteers. Search online or contact your local Chamber of Commerce for more information on opportunities to get involved.

Build
Your Audience by Building Your Volunteer Program

In 2011,
over 64 million people volunteered for an organization at least once.
Volunteers are critical partners within organizations and within the community.
Performing Arts Centers, Community Theaters, and Concert Halls all depend on
volunteers to help keep things running smoothly. From ushering to helping out
at concessions, volunteers play a key role in making the theater-going
experience richer for patrons.

Here’s
five tips for creating and maintaining a robust volunteer program in your
performing arts organization.

1.
Expand the roles of your volunteers

Volunteering can be so much more than just ushering
and taking tickets. Most volunteers have
valuable life and work experience to contribute, and sometimes all it takes is
giving them the opportunity to shine. Think about other ways volunteers can
help aside from the typical roles of usher, ticker-taker, or event staff.
Offering more robust opportunities can keep volunteers interested and help them
feel more valued, increasing the chance that they will stay on for years to
come.

Supervising,
evaluating and even promoting volunteers will keep them committed to your
organization.

2.
Emphasize customer service

Volunteers are the backbone of many performing arts
organizations. Ensuring volunteers understand their impact on customer service can
play a huge role in exceeding customer expectations.

A
thorough training program that emphasizes customer service helps volunteers
feel confident when dealing with patrons. Formal classes, on-the-job-training,
online information, handbooks, safety training, and mentoring programs can all
contribute to a positive experience for both the volunteer and the customer!

Host a
new volunteers coffee event. Pair new volunteers with more experienced ones, to
help them learn the ropes. Plan social events to help volunteers feel part of
the community. Make sure volunteers know whom to contact if they have
questions.

While volunteers
may only put in two hours a week or work one performance a month, they help
organizations exceed expected levels of customer service. Surprising a customer
by exceeding their expectations is a great to make sure that the first time
ticket buyer comes back again and again.

3. Utilize
social media to recruit and engage volunteers

Twitter,
Facebook, Google Groups and other social media can help spread a wide net for
finding and keeping volunteers who are interested in helping.

Once on
board, keep the lines of communication open with volunteers by posting
information on social media about upcoming performances, social events, and
training opportunities. Post photos of volunteers in action, share stories of
positive customer comments, and share volunteering tips. Keep your theater’s social
media engine active to help volunteers stay connected with the organization.

Volunteering
has many benefits. It’s a great way to meet new people, learn a new skill, be
part of the community, boost career options, and explore new interests.
Creating a robust volunteer program within your organization is vital to its long-term
health.

Volunteers are influencers within your community and
have active lives. Keeping track of their various commitments can be a
challenge. Provide volunteers with the option to choose the dates, times, and
specific tasks they are interested in through online volunteer management
software to increase the likelihood that they will sign up. And, because they
receive automatic email reminders, they are more likely to show up.

Online tools also make it easier for volunteer
organizers to set up and keep track of the volunteer schedule, generate
reports, and send messages to volunteers. This data also provides valuable
information when recognizing volunteers at the end of the year.

Influencers
are a vital part of performing arts organizations. Through volunteers,
performing arts organizations are able spread their name and gain support in
new social circles through a multitude of platforms.

5.
Show appreciation

Volunteers strengthen the quality of your
organization, and its important to show how much you appreciate the time and
energy they put into making each and every performance and event a special one
for patrons.

Public Recognition: press
release, article in the local paper, mention in the newsletter, recognition
luncheon or dinner

Plaque on the wall,
Volunteer of the month

Online or actual photo
wall

Community service awards

Volunteers
connect with arts organizations and each other in powerful and positive ways. By
recognizing volunteers, they are more likely to remain loyal to the theater by
deepening their connection and commitment to the arts.

A
well-run volunteer program helps make the experience a positive one for all
involved. Using a free online volunteer management system like
VolunteerSpot saves tons of time, is easy to use, and makes the job of
volunteer coordinator super easy! Visit VolunteerSpot.com today and give it a
try.

Online Signups | Volunteer Management Solutions

Organizers and volunteer coordinators, you gave us your feedback and we listened! Now your online signups can be locked and reopened by YOU, at your convenience. We are continually adding new features and updates to make signing up and coordinating volunteers a breeze - we are thrilled to offer this new feature to organizers - try it out today!

VolunteerSpot
organizers can disable signups and prevent participants from making
changes or canceling their spots in three easy steps:

1) Login and open your activity in the MyActivities Tab

2) In the Status Calendar, click on the status clipboard of any planned day

3) Choose “Disable Signups” in the popup menu and repeat for each day you wish to lock.

* * *

Best Practice:

To
foster positive communication, it’s a best practice to alert
participants that you are disabling the sign up calendar and ask them to
contact you directly with changes or additions to their schedules. You
may do so using the “Send Message” feature – choosing to alert
everyone, or only sending the message to those signed up on a particular
day. Click here to learn how.

When you’re ready to unlock the day, choose “Enable Signups” on the popup menu for each day you wish to unlock.

The mission of Cornerstone Charter school is to provide a college preparatory educational environment with a
curricular emphasis on biotechnology and life sciences that furthers the
philosophy of respect and high expectations for all, enabling students to
become confident, self-directed, and responsible life-long learners.

I am the Volunteer Coordinator for a K-12 Charter School
in Belle Isle, Florida. We have approximately 1,200 approved volunteers, as
each family is required to complete at least 30 volunteer hours of approved
volunteer activities.

How do
you use VolunteerSpot to coordinate your parent volunteers?

Each week, I send out a Volunteer Update via email; it
includes reminders of various volunteer and school requirements, as well as
links to all of the ongoing, current, and upcoming volunteer
opportunities. For instance, Lunch Duty, Car Line & Jeans Day
Wristband Sales (we have a uniform requirement and the students have the option
of jeans on Fridays for $1) are weekly events.

Occasionally, we'll have a
"Teach In" opportunity where I need additional parents to come in and
serve as crowd control in the auditorium. I also use Volunteerspot to staff our
Used Uniform Store, and Teacher Workroom, which are trained activities only
sent out to specific groups of people. My favorite events to schedule via
volunteerspot each year are Ducktoberfest (our annual fall festival) and the
Silent Auction/Pancake Breakfast, for which we have dozens of different shifts
throughout the day, and multiple people in each shift...allowing for a one-time
setup for me, and then volunteers can sign up and cancel and replace one
another as needed.

What
other activities are you involved in as a volunteer or volunteer leader?

So far, I only coordinate all of the volunteers within my
job requirement, but I am starting to get involved with some community
volunteer projects. I also encouraged my Boosters Club, and the Homeroom
parents within my school to use their own Volunteerspot account to organize
concession stand and in-class volunteers, and they have had a very successful
time of it so far.

What’s
one piece of advice you have for parent volunteers out there?

Delegate! Delegate! Delegate! You cannot do it all
yourself, and if you try, people will always expect it of you. Find a few
right-hand people with whom you work well and get them to help recruit,
delegate, and keep you from getting too overworked and burnt out.

Why did you decide to use VolunteerSpot?

A parent suggested it to me after the first year I was in
my job, running around dealing with reply-all emails, last minute
cancellations, and too much scrambling to rearrange hundreds of volunteers each
week. Volunteerspot gives me a wonderful way to plan, expect, and handle
cancellations, etc. while allowing me to focus on the other aspects of my job
so that I don't waste time constantly telling people that certain activities
are full.

We're a community school that is hinged on Parental Involvement.
Volunteerspot has become an integral part of helping to communicate all of the
available opportunities to our parents. I don't know how we ever did without
it!

We salute Whitney and all the other volunteer leaders out there making a difference. If you're using VolunteerSpot, write and tell us about what you're doing and give us a chance to shine our Volunteer Spotlight on you!! Just email us at VS@volunteerspot.com.

Signing Up to Help is Even Easier on the Go!

We've done it again! VolunteerSpot has revamped the way volunteers sign up, making it even easier and faster from their smartphones and mobile devices. New users are raving, "Signing up to volunteer was so easy, what a great site!" and "Who knew signing up to help would be so simple on my phone, awesome!"

The mobile signup and volunteer calendar automatically displays whenever a volunteer clicks the signup link provided by their organizer online or via email. Through an intuitive, streamlined interface, volunteers can fill a spot and confirm their commitments in just a few taps on their device.

VolunteerSpot's Mobile SignUp lets volunteers:

- Signup on the go right on their smartphone - Leave an interactive comment/note on the signup - Sync commitments to personal online calendars - Fill in extra information required by organizers - Access a full menu of all volunteer activity invitations - Quickly access event location and organizer info

VolunteerSpot's free online sign up sheets and volunteer scheduling software make it easy for groups to do GOOD - from schools, to community organizations, nonprofits, faith groups, teams you name it!

Our Favorite Ways to Make a Difference by Shopping

Cause shopping and social good shopping are taking the world by storm! Why not turn your regular routine of shopping online into another way to do GOOD and give back? Check out some of our favorite cause shopping platforms:

SocialVest: This free browser app lets you "Purchase on Purpose" - earn money for the causes you care about simply by shopping online. They allocate a percentage of your online shopping total so you can contribute it to your favorite nonprofit when you choose.

SocialGoodNetwork: Shop your favorite retailers on SGN's shopping site and make a difference - their hand-picked store(s) donate to causes you care about when you buy from them online.

OneCause.com: OneCause (home of SchoolPop & OurKidzWin too!) lets you click, shop, contribute! Simply visit their page, check out their featured retailers (or choose a school) and see the exact percentage of your purchase which will be donated. They also have great seasonal shopping guides and ideas.

Groupon Grassroots:
This cause-oriented branch of the daily offer website most of us have
come to know is offereing nonprofits and community groups ways to raise
money from supporters of their campaigns. From building playgrounds and
gardens to promoting social justice theatre and camps for less
fortunate kids, GG is a great shopping alternative.

iGive.com: This cause shopping platform lets you choose from among their 'mall' of more than 5,300 organizations or suggest one of
your own. Every time you view a page, refer a friend, or buy something through their site,
you donate money toward your cause.